Making art from river trash

OTTAWA — A telephone pole installed near the south end of the Ottawa Reservoir is the backdrop for the muddy front section of a Zenith TV, a rusty minibike and a bunch of crumpled, dented beer cans. Some people see trash. Bruce Stowe sees art. With the help of friends, the Ottawa artist recently created the sculpture using refuse, most of which was found last year during Blanchard River cleanup efforts. "They used to come up to the river and dump stuff. Everyone did, especially the farmers," said Stowe. "And they would even push in old cars. They probably stopped in the '50s when someone started to complain." An igneous granite boulder resting at the bottom of the pole is engraved with the words: "We all have a role to play in keeping our waterways clean." "It's a reminder that it is up to each of us to do our part in keeping the Blanchard clean," wrote Jacqueline Langhals, executive director of GO Ottawa, in a news release. The nonprofit organization is leading implementation of the GO Ottawa Strategic Growth Plan. Stowe said Langhals is always looking for ways to bring attention to the village. "And she was thinking about, you know, we've got all this trash. Let's make something out of it," he recalled. "So I said, OK, why don't we make it like a trash totem pole." Volunteers have been collecting trash from the river for at least four years, said Stowe. In 2024, the collection tipped the scales at 2,220 pounds of junk that was removed from two miles of waterway between the reservoir on South Agner Street and Arrowhead Park. The cleanup effort was orchestrated by the Putnam Paddle Co. through a grant from H2Ohio. Putnam County Soil and Water Conservation District, the Greenspace Development Committee and GO Ottawa assisted as well. To raise awareness and spark conversation, select items to be repurposed into a piece of junk art were saved and stored at the town's recycling area. Stowe picked pieces including a rusty rolled up metal bedspring, part of an old sewing machine and a porcelain lamp holder. The 1950s minibike still has both tires attached. There's a toilet seat, a horseshoe and a Nelsonville Star and Moon Brick that was manufactured between 1880-1937. Stowe said these were once used for sidewalks and can be found in towns across the country. His friends Lynne and Karl Hirzel assisted in constructing the installation. "They're two of my best critics so the three of us, we came up with this," he said. A metal star hangs from the top of the pole. "I'm not even sure what that used to be," he said. The television may have special meaning, according to Stowe. In the 1960s and 1970s, the GTE Sylvania LG plant in Ottawa manufactured picture tubes for Zenith. "This TV may have been made with parts from Ottawa," he said. "So we had to use that." There is also a fishing reel and several lures on the creation. "One (of the lures) was so good, I'm going to take this," Stowe said. "I'm going to fish with it." One of the strangest pieces is the arm of a baby doll. "It's a plastic doll that's very old that was just kind of smashed and crushed," said Stowe. "So that's got to say something. There's power in that somehow." Actual construction took less than three hours. "I thought, I don't want to make it too refined. I thought, I want to keep the trash theme. If I start painting it and making it look pretty, it doesn't have the same signal because at one time that was the plan," he said. The Hirzels had ideas for screwing and wiring the pieces to the wooden pole that was installed at the south end of the reservoir along the path towards the boat launch. "We finally stopped and said, OK, it can be added onto," said Stowe. The trash totem pole will be unveiled ahead of this year's Blanchard River cleanup, taking place on Aug. 24 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteers should meet at Arrowhead Park, 615 W. Main St. All supplies will be provided. The event is again supported by a grant from H2Ohio, awarded to Putnam Paddle Co. to fund cleanup efforts along the river. The work session is being organized in partnership with Putnam Paddle Co., Putnam County Soil and Water and GO Ottawa. The piece is definitely a work in progress, Stowe added. "We can still rearrange some of the cans and get more cans and make a garland for Christmas," he laughed. "We'll decorate it for Christmas with some nice red cans of Budweiser."